Florence-ravaged areas face more river flooding as Wilmington, North Carolina, hits 100-inch yearly rain total

By Kristina Pydynowski, AccuWeather senior meteorologist

December 19, 2018, 1:11:39 PM EST

Flooding will plague residents living along many swollen rivers in the southeastern United States despite dry weather into Wednesday.

Following the latest bout of heavy rain late last week, many rivers surged to minor to moderate flood stage from northern Florida to northern Virginia and Maryland.

"Areas in eastern North Carolina and northeastern South Carolina, which were hit hard a few months ago by Hurricane Florence, are among the communities dealing with flooded rivers," according to AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Dan Pydynowski.

This includes the Northeast Cape Fear, Cape Fear, Pee Dee, Little Pee Dee and Lumber rivers.

This was the scene along the swollen Pee Dee River in Pamplico, South Carolina, on Dec. 14, 2018. (Twitter Photo/@StaceyH54298286)

While the ongoing river flooding will not rival the devastation endured during Florence, it can cause more hardships for residents.

The Lumber River at Lumberton, North Carolina, crested just shy of 19 feet this past weekend, according to National Weather Service (NWS) hydrologists.

The river at this location had a slightly higher crest on Nov. 19 and set a record crest of 29 feet after Florence on Sept. 17.

Even though the river has crested, moderate river flooding may persist into this weekend.

Outside of areas hit by Florence, river flooding is also occurring southward to northern Florida. This includes communities along the Congaree, Savannah, Satilla, Alapaha, Chipola, Suwannee and Apalachicola rivers.

The Suwannee River reached major flood stage near Benton, Florida, on Saturday morning.

As the floodwaters drain downstream, the Suwannee River is anticipated to rise to minor to moderate flood stage across northern Florida through at least the weekend.

The river may stay at major flood state at Suwannee Springs, Florida, into next week.

Residents living along larger streams and rivers in the Southeast are urged to monitor advice by local officials and take the necessary steps to protect their home and property from the advancing floodwaters. Heed any evacuation orders that are issued.

Download the free AccuWeather app to stay aware of river flooding warnings.

Some of the rivers along the southern Atlantic seaboard may remain out of their banks into next week as another rainstorm is forecast to drench the region from Wednesday nigh to early Friday.

If heavy rain transpires, it could once again cause area creeks, streams and rivers to rise.

Hurricane Florence marked the start of an unusually wet stretch of months for the Southeast.

While there is still half of the month left, December average rainfall totals have already been exceeded in many locations.

This includes in Wilmington, North Carolina, which measured 100 inches of rain for the entire year on Saturday morning. A total of 57.61 inches is the city's normal annual rainfall.

We made it! pic.twitter.com/FxvfECtVmp
— NWS Wilmington NC (@NWSWilmingtonNC) December 15, 2018

That total includes the 23.02 inches that put the city under water during and after Florence.

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